Wind and sun fuel Home Depot
Home Depot has put its goals in black and white: a 40% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and a 50% reduction by 2035.
"Managing carbon emissions has been a focus for Home Depot for more than 10 years," said Ron Jarvis, VP of environmental innovation. "Our dual strategy to reduce our total energy use and create a cleaner energy portfolio has helped us to reduce our absolute carbon emissions by over 3 million metric tons since 2009."
Ron Jarvis
How does the Atlanta-based retail giant hope to achieve this goal. Two new initiatives were announced Feb . 13 – one by wind, and one by sun.
Wind Power Expansion
The Home Depot is expanding its wind-powered renewable energy program by adding a third offsite wind project. The company will purchase enough wind energy from the Pretty Prairie Wind Project in Kansas to power about 40 stores for a year. The home improvement retailer currently partners with two operating wind farms in Texas and Mexico.
The Pretty Prairie Wind Project, owned and operated by a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, is located in Reno County, Kansas. The larger wind farm is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs, up to 20 full-time operational jobs, and provide an estimated $77 million in local community benefits.
Through a 15-year power purchase agreement, The Home Depot will purchase 15 megawatts (MW) of the wind farm's 220 MW capacity once it is operational in late 2019. The farm will feature 83 wind turbines that can produce enough power to provide more than 50,000 average U.S. homes with clean electricity each year.
Solar Power Expansion
In addition to the Kansas, Texas and Mexico wind farms, the company also procures energy from solar farms in Delaware, Massachusetts and Minnesota with a combined annual output of 25.0 million kilowatt hours (kWh). Forty-five U.S. Home Depot stores now have operational rooftop solar systems, and the company plans to expand its residential rooftop solar offerings.
The initiatives were announced along with its climate change report card. The company made the “A” List of the CDP, an environmental impact non-profit, for its actions to cut carbon emissions and mitigate climate risks.
"Managing carbon emissions has been a focus for Home Depot for more than 10 years," said Ron Jarvis, VP of environmental innovation. "Our dual strategy to reduce our total energy use and create a cleaner energy portfolio has helped us to reduce our absolute carbon emissions by over 3 million metric tons since 2009."
Ron JarvisHow does the Atlanta-based retail giant hope to achieve this goal. Two new initiatives were announced Feb . 13 – one by wind, and one by sun.
Wind Power Expansion
The Home Depot is expanding its wind-powered renewable energy program by adding a third offsite wind project. The company will purchase enough wind energy from the Pretty Prairie Wind Project in Kansas to power about 40 stores for a year. The home improvement retailer currently partners with two operating wind farms in Texas and Mexico.
The Pretty Prairie Wind Project, owned and operated by a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, is located in Reno County, Kansas. The larger wind farm is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs, up to 20 full-time operational jobs, and provide an estimated $77 million in local community benefits.
Through a 15-year power purchase agreement, The Home Depot will purchase 15 megawatts (MW) of the wind farm's 220 MW capacity once it is operational in late 2019. The farm will feature 83 wind turbines that can produce enough power to provide more than 50,000 average U.S. homes with clean electricity each year.
Solar Power Expansion
In addition to the Kansas, Texas and Mexico wind farms, the company also procures energy from solar farms in Delaware, Massachusetts and Minnesota with a combined annual output of 25.0 million kilowatt hours (kWh). Forty-five U.S. Home Depot stores now have operational rooftop solar systems, and the company plans to expand its residential rooftop solar offerings.
The initiatives were announced along with its climate change report card. The company made the “A” List of the CDP, an environmental impact non-profit, for its actions to cut carbon emissions and mitigate climate risks.